Victoria’s batsmen face a final day scrap to prevent a South Australian victory in the Sheffield Shield match in Adelaide.
The Bushrangers, after being made to follow-on, are 2-93 in their second innings at stumps on Saturday’s third day, still 109 runs behind the Redbacks.
SA landed early blows in the visitor’s second dig before Cameron White (38 not out) and Marcus Stoinis (28 not out) steadied with an unbroken partnership of 64 runs.
The pair will resume on Sunday with Victoria battling to avoid their fifth consecutive defeat in a grim Shield campaign this summer.
A win for South Australia will take them to top spot on the table.
The Redbacks banked innings points and enforced the follow-on after bowling Victoria out for 309 in their first innings, some 202 runs behind SA’s first innings of 6(dec)-511.
Victorian Glenn Maxwell struck another century, making 119 to follow his knocks of 127 and 94 in last week’s Shield game against NSW.
Maxwell was dismissed playing his favoured reverse sweep, having been dropped when attempting the same shot on 15.
Maxwell resumed on Saturday with David Hussey, who added just one to his overnight score before falling for 71.
Maxwell then accelerated in a 84-run stand with Matthew Wade, who contributed just five runs in the partnership.
But Maxwell’s dismissal prompted a slide of 3-15 before John Hastings (32) and Jon Holland (29) put on 50 runs for the ninth wicket.
SA pacemen Kane Richardson (4-51) and Chadd Sayers (3-69) were the chief destroyers.